Arts Nov 19 Watch 6:42 Bluegrass icon Alice Gerrard on her trailblazing career With their unique harmonies, the bluegrass duo of Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard blazed trails for female folk singers in the 1960s and ‘70s. They were also civil rights activists who used their music to speak out politically. To celebrate…
Arts Jun 22 Watch 6:42 How guitarist and singer Molly Tuttle became a bluegrass music star Bluegrass guitar picker Molly Tuttle is at the top of her profession. Named the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Guitar Player of the Year, she was drawn to this traditional American art form from the cradle. But the story of how… By Tom Casciato
Arts May 19 Watch 8:15 MerleFest celebrates music from the Appalachian region and boosts the local economy MerleFest has been a mainstay on the music circuit since 1988. People flock to the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina each year to celebrate music of the Appalachian region, which has helped the local economy. Jeffrey… By Jeffrey Brown, Anne Azzi Davenport, Alison Thoet
Arts Jun 24 Watch 2:39 Remembering Ralph Stanley and his ‘God-given voice’ After a long battle with skin cancer, bluegrass pioneer Ralph Stanley died overnight at the age of 89. Since forming his first band in 1946, Stanley’s haunting voice came to epitomize the bluegrass genre’s “High Lonesome” sound, and he won… By PBS News Hour
Jun 24 Ralph Stanley, man of constant sorrow and bluegrass legend, dies at 89 By Joshua Barajas Bluegrass hall of famer Ralph Stanley died Thursday night after a long bout with skin cancer, his grandson confirmed. He was 89. Continue reading
Jun 14 Column: A banker-turned-banjo player finds payoff in her passion By Alison Brown Here’s a story you don’t hear too often: An investment banker leaves it all behind to become a touring banjo player. Alison Brown is a three-time Grammy winner, a USA Artists fellow and co-founder of Nashville-based Compass Records. But she… Continue reading
Nov 19 Watch Bela Fleck and Abigail Washburn meld marriage with musical collaboration By PBS News Hour Despite playing a common instrument, celebrated banjo players Abigail Washburn and Bela Fleck have kept their musical careers separate. But after performing together as a favor to a relative, the two realized their different styles could be complementary, leading to… Continue watching
Aug 20 American music of days gone by endures in Virginia By Frank Carlson In August, tens of thousands of fans and musicians gathered in the small town of Galax, Virginia, for the 79th Old Fiddler’s Convention. When the festival began in 1935, one of its aims was to keep “alive the memories and… Continue reading